Eternal || Elijah Mikaelson

XXXII - Broken Stitches

I apologize for the lack of Rolijah in this chapter. :/ Sowwy.

But the next chapter will be better. ;)

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Chapter Thirty-Two

When I woke up the next morning with a pounding headache, I was in my old room in the Abattoir. I assumed that Klaus had tried to get all of the nightwalker's out, but maybe kept Marcel around with his inner circle.

"Klaus?" I called out as I walked down the halls, now dressed in jeans and a tank top. "Where are you?"

"He's gone," I heard Marcel say, an angered tone in his voice. "Probably went to go dagger Rebekah again," he sounded defeated.

I sighed, shaking my head. "I'll see you later, Marcellus."

By the time I made it to the house, I could already hear the shouting voices inside of the mansion. Hayley was sitting on the front steps, and glanced up at me with a sad smile. I nodded to her, sighing softly before I shoved the door of the mansion open, then closed it after I was inside.

"Has history taught you nothing? We don't abandon you, Nik, you drive us away!" Rebekah argued with him.

"Is that so?" Klaus whispered, and I moved into the room that they were in to see him holding a dagger. "What have I done lately, other than cooperate?" he pointed the dagger at Elijah. "Bow down to you, brother, to make up for daggering you! For the greater good of our plan to reclaim our home!" he pointed it at Rebekah. "Look the other way, sister, while you repeat the cycle with Marcel, falling again for a man you shouldn't be with! While he controls the empire that we built! That he took!"

I saw the tears that had streaked down his cheeks, and felt my heart clench. He was truly a good person, he had good intentions. All that he had ever done within these past few months had been to protect his family, and to make sure that when his child came into this world, his home would be safe for it.

"Now, I make no excuses for past sins," he said, his voice beginning to crack. "But in the one moment when you two could have chosen to stand by me, to believe in me, and believe that my intentions for my own child were pure... You chose to stand against me. To side with my enemies," he walked forwards, and I took a step towards Klaus to make sure that he didn't try and dagger one of his siblings. "I wanted our home back, and now I have it. So I'm going to live there. And the two of you," he said in a cold tone. "You can stay here together, and rot," he spun the dagger so that the hilt was pointed at Elijah.

Elijah seemed unsure for a moment, then took the dagger in his hands.

I sighed as Klaus left the room. "You two expected only the worst of your brother... And now, you have only gotten a sample of it."

I moved past both of them, following behind Klaus.

"You're coming with me, little wolf," Klaus told Hayley as he walked out the front door and held it open for me, then shut it when I was outside.

"Why would I go anywhere with you?" Hayley asked.

"Because, Hayley, that child you carry is one of the few things on this earth that matters to me," he said.

I could have sworn that I heard Hayley's heart skip a beat when Klaus said that... I also could have sworn that Klaus had almost say 'you and that child', implying that he also cared about Hayely. Perhaps I'm hearing things?

"Now, you can fight me on this, but you will lose," Klaus finished.

When she didn't budge, I sighed softly, and followed after Klaus before opening the back door. "Listen, Hayley, we need to keep you under protection. I can guarantee that Nik won't pull anything, not while I'm around. So kindly come over here, please."

Hayley responded much more strongly to kindness, and Klaus rolled his eyes when she walked over to me instead of him. She climbed into the van, and we drove off into the sunset.

Also known as the highway that would lead us to the vampire/witch filled French Quarter.

*

"Hey," I said, knocking on Hayley's bedroom door, which was slightly ajar. "How are you?"

"Well, I've been forced to live in a vampire-filled building with one angry and frankly, very psychotic hybrid. So, all in all, wonderful," she said, giving me a fake smile.

I smirked at her. "Well, I really hope you aren't talking about me as the hybrid," she smiled and shook her head, continuing to unpack the clothing that I had gone back to the mansion to get for her. I sighed, opening the door all the way before shutting it behind me. "Listen, I know how you feel about Klaus, but trust me when I say that he really isn't a horrible person."

She scoffed. "That's hard to believe," she paused, glancing over at me. "No offense, I know you're his best friend and all."

I snickered, shaking my head. "Oh, don't worry. I know how much of an asshole he can be. I've experienced it multiple times."

"It's kind of weird, you know," she said, sitting down on her bed and taking a moment away from her unpacking.

"What's weird?"

"You're always the one who calms him down. No matter what, he seems to listen to you."

I smiled softly. "Well, we have... An understanding."

"What do you mean?"

"When I was young, I was very... Closed off. I lost my parents when I was less than ten. Because of that, I shut down around other people. I was just like him. I didn't truly care about anyone else, but then I met him. And I met his family. And suddenly, I had people to love. I would do anything to never lose my family, and he felt the exact same way."

She nodded slowly. "Rebekah told me how the two of you met. You saved him from the witches?"

I smiled. "I'm not sure if 'saved' is the right word."

"That's not how Elijah sees it."

I raised a brow at her, and she continued.

"He thinks that you are his thread, the one thing that holds him together when it's so clear that he is one broken stitch away from being torn to pieces. And, not even just him, the entire family."

I looked down at my hands, before a grin broke out on my face. "To be honest, I think the same about you. I believe that you and the child are the two things that will be his salvation."

She shook her head, frowning. "I don't think he can be saved."

"Hayley," I adjusted my position on the bed to be seated with my legs crossed. "Did Rebekah tell you what happened the day that I changed into a vampire?"

She furrowed her eyebrows, then shook her head. "No, she didn't..."

"Well, maybe we should start with this. Do you think that Klaus cares about me? As a friend?"

Hayley kind of looked at me like I was crazy. "Yeah, of course he does."

"I do too. That is why he slaughtered nearly every witch in my village after he found out that they were the ones who killed me," her mouth dropped open, and I kept speaking. "When Klaus cares about something, he will do anything and everything in his power to keep it safe and under his protection. And today, he told you that your child was one of the few things on the planet that he cared about. Whether you want to believe it or not, he also cares about you too."

"What are you saying?"

"What I'm saying is that despite his actions, which really make him seem like a complete and utter jackass, he does care about both of you. And he will protect the two of you until the day he dies, that I am sure of," I told her. Then I stood up, and began walking to the door.

"Now, I have to go and spend the night drinking with and consulting a very likely frustrated Klaus. I'll see you later, Hayley," I gave her one smile over my shoulder, then walked out as she waved at me.